


Recovery

by FelineSassosaurus



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: But no, I had to stay up until 3am writing this, Mind Link, Mutual Pining, Post-S6, Recovery, and also Blackashi trash, blackashi, in which I reveal myself to be shameless shallura trash, it was just supossed to be a little ficlet, it's shippy but also not??, just a little 'Black thanks Allura' ficlet, look it's bby's first shippy fic let me live, negative space shippy??, oh also it's a mind link thing, shallura - Freeform, shippy but not yet??
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-17
Updated: 2018-07-17
Packaged: 2019-06-11 18:31:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15321642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FelineSassosaurus/pseuds/FelineSassosaurus
Summary: Before Team Voltron can get back to Earth they need to make a stop off on Olkarion for some much needed respite. Allura takes the time to check up on Shiro, Black takes the time to thank Allura, and Shiro takes the time to comfort Allura.





	Recovery

**Author's Note:**

> ok look fam just, just let me live it's my first ever shippy fic  
> Huge shoutout to my girl oceandrIve for beta reading and putting up with my shallura obsession, also to smolsarcasticraspberry for the mind link inspo - saw it on my dash ages ago but never read it cuz E rated but still, Thanks!

Allura walked quietly to Shiro's room, tray of fresh vegetables and roast meat in hand. It had been several days since she'd given him his new body but his condition hadn't improved as much as she’d like, though given the difficulties of healing while essentially homeless it was understandable.

They had finally landed on Olkarion just last night and she was looking forward to seeing how he'd settled into something other than a thin emergency cot in the back of Black's cockpit. She'd hardly seen him at all these past few days, flying Blue and towing Black alongside Hunk and the Yellow Lion with Lance and Pidge at their rear while Keith kept watch over Shiro. It would have been easier if Keith could still pilot Black, then they could form Voltron and travel nearly twice as fast, but without Shiro within Black's consciousness the link was gone. Red and Blue had initially called to their original Paladins, but Keith’s determination to stay near Shiro won over Red so she allowed Lance to continue as her pilot for a while longer and Blue facilitated that by continuing with Allura.

Black, on the other hand, had her chosen Paladin back properly and would take no other, even if only for a few days.

Allura's mind wandered off to the memory of finding him. How she'd closed her eyes and reached out when suddenly she had found herself surrounded by a vast expanse of stars and galaxies above and below and stretching out beyond every horizon. She couldn't stop the blush rising in her cheeks as she recalled calling out to him, how she’d not even finished saying his name before hearing his response. The sound had enveloped her, inside and out, it was clear, grateful and undeniably Shiro, his presence hitting her like a gust of wind. She blinked and he was there in front of her, mouth split into that warm and endearing grin, his eyes betraying just how desperately happy he truly was to see her, as she reached out and held him. The memory of carrying his soul didn't help her blush. One body is too little for two souls, especially when one is as vast and intricate as Shiro's. With nowhere else to go their beings pressed so close that the edges between them blurred and faded so they could not tell where one ended and the other began. It was all Allura could do in those few seconds to focus on the task at hand, one foot in front of the other, give him a body, don't focus on feeling his feelings, don't linger on his overwhelming gratitude, hands on the new body's head, for the love of everything don't focus on his memories of all those late nights spent wandering the castle and chatting and how many times she'd never known she was rescuing him from himself. Just bring him home.

She'd seen the way he sees her. Not an image but rather a concept, a rough outline of the traits that most defined her to him. Her fierceness, her loyalty, her dedication, her compassion, her playfulness. As a whole in his mind she was the very personification of hope, something he'd come so close to losing so many times. She'd entered into his world with the means and determination to save the universe, a way that gave him a reason and a purpose he could fight for, over and above just surviving. She was both the fulfillment of his old hopes and the foundation of his new ones.

All this, and the knowledge that he found her breathtakingly beautiful, but was always too shy to say so.

She chuckled to herself, the Black Paladin of Voltron, survivor and Champion of the Galra gladiator ring, liberator of planets and the Guardian Spirit of the Cosmos was too shy to tell her she's pretty. What did he see in her mind though-

He was having a dream. Allura didn't know how she knew, but there was no mistake. She'd been right every time since she'd found him. Hunk had been the first to observe this new development, noting that Allura could guess whether Shiro was stirring, sleeping soundly or fussing and mumbling with total accuracy. On one occasion when they’d stopped to sleep in an asteroid belt and she’d gone to see him Krolia noticed that his fussing died down when she boarded, and in his sleep he’d shift on his pillow to face her no matter where she stood. The day after she’d quietly focused on him when he was having a nightmare to tell him _everything is alright, you’re safe_ as a test and it had worked. Pidge and Coran theorized that it was similar to her connection with the mice, which it did seem to be in some aspects, though with Shiro still lapsing in and out of consciousness and not being quite coherent the few times he was awake it was hard to tell. She couldn't decide whether to be glad or tentative in this new and hopefully temporary development. For now it was useful, as she could help ensure that the nightmares that plagued his sleep for so long would not impede his recovery. Luckily, this dream felt like a nice one.

She finally reached his room, the door opening soundlessly, and smiled at the sight of him sprawled out under the blanket. One leg stretched out, the other bent, and his single arm draped lazily over his head with his face nuzzled into his bicep. The chair beside the bed was empty, but had a red and white jacket draped across the back.

"So Keith finally went to get himself something to eat," Allura quietly spoke, both to herself and to the sleeping paladin, "Good, he needs it and do you."

She turned her back to Shiro as she placed the tray on the small dresser, trying her hand at mentally poking him for his attention like she did with the mice. The moment she reached out a vast presence filled her mind, ancient, powerful and knowing.

"Princess Allura." A voice spoke behind her, not quite Shiro's.

She turned slowly, leaning against the dresser and struggling against the immense weight of this mind she'd touched. Shiro was now sat upright in bed, shoulders squared and eyes glowing yellow as they met each other's gaze.

"You do not need to fight me, your father bonded us after all." Shiro's mouth moved but it was not just his voice that it produced. An echo of a wise and war hardened woman accompanied his voice, both as a gentle whisper and an incontestable command.

"Yes," Allura breathed, forcing herself to relax and allow this new mind to touch hers. "My father did bond us, Black Lion, my apologies for resisting you."

The Black Lion smiled fondly at her through her Paladin, the exact same way that Shiro would when he was trying to convince her that work could wait until morning.

"I need no apology from you," Black continued, her voice soothing. "All I could do was keep my Paladin from death, but it was you who gave him life again. If anything I owe you a debt of gratitude I can never repay for enabling him to return to his rightful place at my helm." She reached Shiro’s hand out to Allura and took her hand gently, eyes earnest and smile warm, "Thank you, Allura. First you gave my Takashi hope for the future, then hope for _his_ future, and now the life to live out both these new dreams of his.” Black leaned forward and gently pushed Shiro’s forehead against Allura’s, and closed the eyes they shared, “Thank you."

With that final word, Shiro slumped forward limply, heaving a sigh as Black’s consciousness released control of him. Allura held him upright in her arms for a moment before easing him back onto the bed, then allowed herself a moment to process what had just happened.

The Black Lion had just, essentially, possessed Shiro to thank her. A bond strong enough for a Lion to keep their Paladin from death itself and allow the Lion to speak freely through their Paladin? And from the sudden increase in his quintessence it seemed Black had left him a parting gift to help him along. Shiro certainly was a man who garnered more than just a moment’s thought. But that would have to wait, he still needed to eat.

She sat down next to him, placing her hand on his forehead and focused on gently pulling him into the waking world.

_Wake up, Shiro._

He murmured, but no more.

_Wake up, Takashi._

He stirred, then drew in a deep breath and blinked drowsily up at her, awake though not entirely aware just yet. She moved her hand down to his cheek the feel his temperature, and wasn't surprised when he turned his face to her hand and nuzzled into it contentedly. Six months without a body had him terribly touch-starved, and consequently rather clingy. Not that Allura minded it, really.

"Still a bit feverish," She whispered, "But well enough for Black to speak through you. That's good."

"Mmm," He mumbled, still with his face in her hand. "She likes you... ‘most as much as I do..."

There was that cheeky smile she'd been missing, but no touch of shyness in him. Was he too drowsy to be shy, or had this recent brush with death emboldened him? The thought was exciting, surely, she’d picked up on his attraction to her shortly after the humans’ arrival and had waited for him to settle into his new role before pursuing anything but he’d never made any move or overt indication. Even after she’d made several tactful hints he seemed to either entirely miss or ignore them. After ‘Shiro’ had returned there was little remnant of that potential so she figured he’d only mildly fancied her and had simply moved on, a thought that had disappointed her greatly at the time. At least until he started becoming more argumentative and, at times, outright aggressive, then she was thankful that she’d not been more upfront. But that wasn’t the real Shiro, the real one was back and all those little clues and hints she’d first noticed so many months ago were now glaringly obvious. That little glint in his eyes, the tug of a smile at the corners of his mouth, the way he seemed unable to decide whether staring at her was a natural response or just weird. 

She pushed on, her own wants were secondary here. "You need to eat; to get back your strength. Come on, sit up.”

He grumbled as she withdrew her hand from his face, then scrubbed his eyes with his fist as she turned to retrieve the tray. Her breath caught as she turned back to him. He had gotten himself sitting upright, a little slouched and legs crossed under the blanket with his arm resting on his knee. The right strap of the sleeveless top he wore to bed had fallen out of place over the swath of bandages that covered where his shoulder once was, but it was from the shoulders up that caught her off guard. His hair, now fully white, stuck up in every conceivable direction except on his left side where it was plastered to his face, and he was blatantly staring at her with likely the dopiest smile she’d ever seen on him. Their eyes met and suddenly she felt him in her mind. His consciousness felt like the wind, a powerful and potentially devastating force not to be controlled or conquered, but like the wind this harsh side seemed only to come occasionally in favour of the sweet and gentle warm breeze of summertime, wrapping itself around her and promising only good things to come.

Once more she regarded herself through his eyes, though this time she didn’t have a clear and decisive action, such as saving him, to distract her from it. The impression took hold of her gently but she found herself desperately wanting more of it and pushed into it without thinking. His expression shifted, but instead of giving her what she wanted, he pulled back, only offering her lingering feelings of understanding and compassion the source of which puzzled her.

“Is that Hunk’s cooking?” Shiro asked, changing the focus and shaking Allura out of herself, “It smells great.”

“Uh, yes.” Allura went to sit on the bed, but given how he’d pulled away from her she opted for the chair instead. “He made your favourite, as a welcome home.” She hoped he hadn’t caught onto her disappointment. Did he even realise what this bond was? Or that he had some level of control in it?

_Yes, and yes._

Her eyes darted up to his.

_You do?_

His expression softened, _Yes, Princess, I know._ “How else was I hearing your voice in my head telling me ‘it’s just a dream, you’re safe’ ?” These thoughts came with amusement and gratitude.

She looked down at the tray and sheepishly placed it in his lap. “You could have assumed you were going insane?” She joked back.

He chuckled, “After everything I’ve been through? Claiming insanity would just be an injustice.” He smiled, noticing that the meal had been cut into single bite pieces so he didn’t have to worry about trying to cut anything with one hand, or sacrifice his autonomy and having to ask for help. Leave it to Hunk to think of those little things.

Allura sat quietly, trying not to fidget and trying not to mull over the reasons for Shiro’s withdrawal from her. It felt so nice, it felt like she was really wanted. Was it untrue? Did he not mean for her to know? Is it just his appreciation for this second chance? Does he not-

_It’s not that, Allura._

She didn’t look up at him this time. _Then why? Why did you leave me-_

_I didn’t. I wouldn’t._ He sighed and she felt his empathy for her, and the vague impression of a memory of betrayal. _I know what happened with Lotor. I saw it in your mind._

Now she did look up at him, his dark eyes softer than she’d ever known.

“He hurt you.” There was no mistaking the edge in Shiro’s voice as he said it, but he maintained his calm demeanor as he continued. “But if you go running headfirst into the first rebound that presents itself then you’ll only hurt yourself.”

“I don’t understand.” She pled, allowing the emotion to creep into her voice.

He rested his hand on her shoulder, “I’ve seen it time and time again back on Earth among my friends and colleagues, Allura. Someone gets hurt and they look for someone else to fix them but that’s not the healthy thing to do, it only leads to more heartache. He hurt you because he manipulated you, taught you to value yourself based on your abilities and not who you are.” His hand moved to cup her face, “Now your self-perspective is all messed up and you’re not thinking clearly, you’re thinking with your hurt and not your heart.”

She sighed, remembering now how the real Shiro was never one to mince his words and always managed to speak right into the core of the situation. She leaned into his hand as he had done to her just minutes ago, and felt his thumb move across her cheek to catch the few tears that she hadn’t realized escaped.

She didn’t trust the tightness of her throat so instead, _I just thought… I just thought maybe he was the key to rebuilding… But his only aim was to destroy…_

Anger and resentment bubbled inside her at the recollection of Romelle’s story, the knowledge that her people lived on and under the thumb of that vile man without even realizing that their ‘saviour’ was truly their executioner filled her with rage she’d never before experienced.

_You’re right, he used you, but don’t let that anger poison you._ Shiro soothed, _That’s not who you are, and not who you’re meant to become._

_How would you know who I’m meant to become?_ Her anger turned her cold, and she forgot that this was the real Shiro and not the mutinous imposter for a moment.

He took no offense at her tone, only smiling and gently tugging her chin so she faced him. _You’re the heart of Voltron, since when has a heart filled with bitterness ever done anything good?_

The simple words hit her square in the chest. Shiro was right, how could she help save anyone if she was too preoccupied being hurt and resentful? How selfish could she be? These past few months had been the hardest of her life, and all of them without him really there. She hadn’t realized how much of a buffer Shiro had been for her, always there as both a co-leader and friend. He always seemed to know when she needed to just talk things through, and no matter how bleak things seemed to be he always managed to shift the perspective to a more hopeful one. Not only had these months been difficult strategically, they’d been tough emotionally, Allura realized, as she recounted how much more often the weight of the universe seemed to be solely on her shoulders in recent times. It had been so long since she had actually been happy, she thought she was happy with Lotor, but now she knew it was all a ruse. She was always so hesitant and full of self-doubt when around him, he’d made her feel better by telling her she could do it, but the extension of that meant that if she couldn’t then… No. Enough. Like so many times before, when her life was at risk from over-exertion on the Balmera and then the Teladuv and again when the Castle of Lions was being sent into the Rift, she closed off her emotions. She was a leader and her people needed her to be strong no matter what, she didn't have the luxury of being weak.

Shiro pulled his hand away and before Allura could protest he moved the tray of half eaten food off to the far side of the bed and opened up his arm. _Stop thinking like that and come here._

She hesitated a moment, but why? Shiro wouldn’t hurt her like Lotor had, and just moments ago she’d been ready to throw herself at him so why the sudden… Fear? Half of her was asking for companionship and the other was screaming for solitude, both options seemed right and yet wrong and everything was so confusing and the only constant was the ache in her chest that she’d been ignoring for nearly a full week now but she hadn’t time for it there was too much that still needed to be done and -

_It’s okay to hurt, Allura._ Shiro interjected softly, but firmly, placing his hand on her shoulder again, _The heart is a river and pain is debris, if you stem the flow then the debris settles and builds up until the river is blocked off. Let it flow, let it pass._

He opened himself to her again and this time she needed no further beckons, instantly pushing herself into his chest. He couldn’t hug her ‘properly’ as he wanted to, so he made up for it through their bond, surrounding her mind with warmth and light. She clenched her eyes shut as tightly as she could for a moment before his words fully sank in and she relented. She held him tightly by fistfuls of his nightshirt and turned her face into his neck as he wrapped his arm around her waist and nuzzled his face into her hair and she wept openly for the first time since Lotor’s betrayal. She’d cried with Lance, but only briefly as the situation didn’t allow for anything more. Now, safe on Olkar, she could cry all she wanted, now she could let her body shake as she heaved trembling breaths and feel like a tiny child whose world was crumbling around them. She clung to him like a lifeline, sobbing for what felt like forever and as she let the tears fall Shiro’s words proved themselves true as the ache in her heart eased and her breaths began to steady themselves. All through the hailstorm of her pain Shiro had kept a steady stream of empathy and comfort through their link, not hiding that he’d felt betrayal before too.

_How? Who?_ Allura asked quietly, still holding onto him but more relaxed now.

_The last girlfriend I had on Earth, before my mission. Found out she’d been cheating on me for months but I was so stupidly enthralled by her that I didn’t see it._ The sting of the memory was shared between the two and he shifted slightly so his cheek rested on her head.

_What did you do? Kicked her out of my apartment and focused on being a big brother and flight instructor._

_Because you knew getting into another relationship was a bad idea?_

_Yes. If you don’t heal from the last relationship you bring the old cuts into the new one._

_And that’s why you pulled away from me? Because you want me to heal by myself?_

He leaned back just enough to look her in the eye, and she saw he’d let a few of his own tears fall. He brushed a stray hair away from her face and behind her ear. _Not by yourself, just outside of a relationship. We’re a team and a family so we do whatever we can to help each other through the tough times. I’m always here for you._

_And when my wounds heal?_

He smiled, knowing her meaning. _Then I’ll still be here for you, no matter what you decide going forward._

_If I decide that what we had… Before… Was the way things will stay?_

_It worked perfectly then, we’ll make it work again._

_And if I decide I’d like more than what we had?_ She looked up at him, hope and playfulness sparking in her eyes.

Amused and a little flattered he smiled at her, _Then you’re going to need to be far more upfront about your intentions because I had no idea that those hints were hints at all._

_Deal. Now, Shiro?_

_Yeah?_

She slowly pulled back from him and stood, wiping away her tears and taking a breath to re-center herself. Pointedly she grabbed the tray and plopped it firmly back into his lap. “Finish your food.”

**Author's Note:**

> *sobbing into a Lean Cuisine* it was just supposed to be a ficlet about Black being grateful to Allura for saving her paladin how did it get so out of hand


End file.
